7 Albums to Stream: Robin Thicke, Judas Priest, Braid, and More

Also: Favored Nations, Akra, Viet Cong, and Antemasque

Happy Fourth of July! Kick off the holiday weekend by streaming new records from Robin Thicke, Judas Priest, Antemasque, and more. Find links and details below.

1) Robin Thicke, Paula. “The LP is his latest ploy to win back his estranged wife Paula Patton, and, if you ask us, a potential publicity stunt engineered to sell loads of records. The cover features a melancholy Thicke with his eyes cast down, and the song names don’t pull any punches — ‘Get Her Back,’ the number he performed at the Billboard Music Awards last week, is joined by titles like ‘Love Can Grow Back,’ ‘Forever Love,’ and ‘Too Little Too Late.'” – SPIN (via USA Today)

2) Judas Priest, Redeemer of Souls. “Guitarist Glenn Tipton told fans not to expect wild experimentation. ‘Sometimes in the past we may have come under fire for being too adventurous musically – so we have listened,’ he said. ‘From start to finish, Redeemer of Souls is 18 songs of pure classic-Priest metal.'” – The Guardian(via iTunes Radio)

3) Favored Nations, Amazon EP. “With roots in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, and Australia, Favored Nations truly are a globe-spanning band. The record features sounds as diverse as the bouncy basslines and disco vibes of the title-track to the gentle acoustic guitar strumming and mellifluous vocals found on ‘That’s Not Who We Are.'” (via SPIN)

4) Akra, Los Peros EP. “Last year’s ‘Pure’ found Akra trying his hand at a kind of oddball Balearic sound, full of analog keys tinged seafoam green, but the new Los Peros EP is darker, rougher, and maybe a little bit druggier; it moves with the calloused lurch of a firewalker scrambling over coals, and its blown-out low end seems similarly charred — not so much acid house as acrid house. Still, there’s something sensual about it all, something almost graceful, whether it’s the blissed-out background vocals of ‘Cairns’ or the colorful chords that come gushing up in the climax of the title track.” (via SPIN)

6) Antemasque, Antemasque. “Originally, the band only planned on releasing the Flea-featuring ‘4AM,’ but after the largely positive response, they went ahead and prepped a full LP. ‘If the whole thing looked unplanned, that’s because it was,’ the band said in a statement. ‘The anticipation of what the reaction from fans and critics would be was very real for us with every new song we put out.'” – Consequence of Sound (via Bandcamp)

7) Braid, No Coast. “No Coast… is a measured and often gorgeous album that still ought to remind fans why they fell in love with Braid in the first place. ‘Bang’ and ‘Damages!’ are anthemic indie-rock songs that recall Guided by Voices. Sweeping up and down the fretboard, ‘East End Hollows’ is about the danciest power-pop tune Braid’s ever written.” (via NPR)